Crusher with combination feed and crushing screw



l Oct.. 20, 1953 H. L. sMlTH ETAL 2,655,123

` CRUSHER WITH COMBINATION FEED AND CRUSHING SCREW Filed Dec. 23, 1950 5Sheet's-Sheet 1 /17 TOR/vfy.

Qct. 20, 1953 H, sMlTH ETAL 2,656,123

CRUSHER WITH COMBINATION FEED AND CRUSHING SCREW ATTORNEY.

Qct. 20, 1953 H. l.. SMITH ETAL 2,656,123

CRUSHER WITH COMBINATION FEED AAND CRUSHING SCREW Filed Dec. 25, 195o ys sheets-sheet s #M65/Q7' L SMIT/f. AAW oz o A Gusmfso/v.

A 7 TOR/VE Y.

Patented Oct. 20, 1953 CRUSHER WITH COMBINATION FEED AND CRUSHING SCREWHubert L. Smith and Arnold A. Gustafson, Port Sulphur, La., assignors toFreeport Sulphur Company, Port Sulphur, La., a corporation of DelawareApplication December 23, 1950, Serial No. 202,463

12 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a crusher, particularly to a crusher of thetype that uses a helical screw in the bottom of a hopper.

Although a crusher made according to this invention has beenspecifically applied to the crushing of block sulphur, it will beevident to those skilled in the art that a crusher made according tothis invention can be used on other similar materials. In the miningoperations in which a crusher made according to this invention has beenused, the sulphur is cooled in large vats, and has to be broken up forconvenience in transporting. It soon became evident from practice thathand methods using picks had to be abandoned in favor of mechanicalcrushing owing to a number of reasons, including the hazard ofexplosions caused by sparks raised in the course of hand operations bythe steel picks striking the steel grids.

It is accordingly an object of this invention to provide a Crusher whichwill take large blocks of sulphur or other mineral or the like and willbreak up the blocks to a lconvenient handling size. This and otherobjects are accomplished in a crusher which is lof the hopper type witha combination Crusher and feed screw in the bottom of the hopper. TheCrusher further has a discharge section secured to the hopper, with adischarge gate having openings at the end of the discharge section. Adischarge mouth opens outward and downward in the end of the dischargesection ahead. of the discharge gate. In addition, a plurality of smallopenings is provided throughout the length of the bottom of the hopperin order to permit small sizes to drop out of the hopper and not requirethese small sizes to be fed by the screw to the discharge mouth. Aconveyor belt or other convenient conveying means is provided below thehopper and receives the discharged material. The small particlesdropping through the holes serve to cushion the belt or other conveyingmeans against the large lumps which may drop out through the dischargemouth or through the discharge openings in the gate.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a crusher made according to this invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation view of the Crusher shown in Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is an end elevation view (the motor drive end) of the Vcrushershown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a view in section on line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a view in section substantially on line 5 5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a view in section on line 6-6 of Fig. 4.

Fig. '7 is a view from the plane l-l of Fig. 4 in the directionindicated by the arrows.

A crusher made according to this invention is preferably mounted to bemobile on tracks 2 by means of wheels d. Any suitable framework may beprovided, comprising I-beams, channels, and angles or the like, suitablybraced with tubing or other structural material. Inasmuch as the detailsof the frame do not form any part of this invention, those details willnot be described here.

Any suitable conveying means such as a conveyor belt G, suitablysupported beneath the hopper, may be provided to ycarry away the crushedsulphur or other mineral.

A hopper indicated generally at 8 consists of a plurality of slopingwalls and a curved bottom Wall. Thus, the hopper is provided withopposed sloping side walls IIJ and other opposed sloping end walls I2.As is best seen in Figs. 3, 5 and 7, the two opposed sloping side wallsIt are tangent to the curved bottom Wall I4. In fact, the two side wallsI!! and the bottom wall Ill are preferably all one piece, either made ofone sheet of steel or other suitable sheet material and rolled intoshape, or fabricated by welding a number of pieces together, or made inany other suitable manner. i

A discharge section indicated generally at i E is secured to one end ofthe hopper. The discharge section preferably comprises a substantiallytubular shell I 8 having substantially the same curvature as the bottomwall I4 and in fact preferably being made integral therewith. Adischarge gate 20 having discharge openings 22 therein is secured to theend of the discharge section in any suitable manner, as for example bythreaded members 24.

An auxiliarv discharge mouth opening downward and outward, is providedin the discharge section ahead, of the discharge `gate 2Q. The dischargemouth 26 is provided in the dise charge section by means of recesses inthe bottom wall portion of the discharge section and in the tubularportion thereof. The recesses consist of a vertical, substantially planecut 28 in the bottom wall oi the discharge section. and a horizontal,also substantially plane cut 3d in the tubular shell. Relatively smallopenings 32 are provided in substantial number in the bottom of thehopper, namely, in the bottom wall throughout the length of the hopper.

The rear of the end walls I2 joins with a vertical plane portion 34(Fig. 4). Any suitable bearings 36 and 38- are supported by the verticalplane portion te and the discharge gate 20 respectively. Bearings 35 and33 serve to support a rotatable shaft llo in the bottom of the hopperand in the discharge section l. Shaft l0 is connected for rotation by anelectric motor 4 2 through suitabledrive means, as forA eX- ample,through a gear reduction unit lll and a chain drive lili.

The screw of a Crusher made according to this invention comprises theaforesaid shaft dgand,

two screw ribbons d3 and 5i! of differentdiameters mounted on the shaft4tlg. linde,y the screw ribbon 4S has a radius such asJtorprovideajsmfall clearance between the screw periphery. andthe hopper bottom,and the second screw ribbon 5B has a substantially smaller radiusthanthatoi the screw d8.

extend the whole length of the shaft-,i,e that portion of the lengthot-the shaft which is in- Sido 1.11118. horror bottom... including. thedischarge section.. l t. This is :accomplished by having theconvolution-s of the second scrcw 5a. liebetween the/convolutions ofthe.v first screw t8.. The two screw ribbonsV arepreierably 186? apart.

Tcfaoilitate the crushing operation, breaker projectionst 5.2` andes areprovided on a breaker plate 555. and on the discharge gate 2trrespectivolv- The. breaker projections. are preferably inthe. crmofsmall triangular pyramids, although it will be understood by thoseskilledin the art that other forms may be used. Breaker plate 56issecured to the. side walls lil (Fig. 5) iinrnediately below.` end wallI (Fig. 4) in a position corresponding to vertical plane portion 35i;however, plate 5&3 has aoentrally located arcuateopening of the.sarnecurvature asbottom wall. It.

in auxiliary or. extension hopper ris secured to the top of main hopper8 by means of a flange tlganda lgridinade of crossed rods bf2E is.secured to. the too. of. auxiliary hopper V5t Operation limer boponiodout here that this orushor will operate choke-loaded withoutstalling. It may also be choke-loaded before starting and can Ibestarted even thoughhthus loaded.

Large blocks, even blocks having a maigimuum dimension of fourY feet, otsulphur or other mineral aredumped by any suitable means into theauxiliary hopper 5S, falling through the. snol formed rods S2. The largebloolrsof mineral to be crushed pass down into the mainhopper 8 andarecrushed by the large andsmall screw ribbons. against the brooke;promotions. 5.2?. and. 5ft. Small particles (two inches or less). nass.through openings 32 onto thehelt o, whichgrnoves in the direction of thearrow V, The small partis cles on the belt serve to cushion the blow ofthe large particles falling outV through the mouth 26 and beingdischarged through the openings 22,.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that this inventionprovides a Crusher or simple design and construction capable of handlinglarge blocks of mineral expeditiously and reducing those large blocks tosmaller blocks ci convenient handling sizes. l

While there is in this application specifically described one form whichthe invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that thisform of the saine is shown for purposesof illustration, and that theinvention may be modied and embodied in various other forms Both screwribbons preferablyY ,feed and c rushing'screw rotatably mounted in 'thehopper.. and discharge section, a discharge gate at the end of thedischarge section, said gate having` discharge openings therein, and anauxiliaryvdischarge mouth ahead of said gate, said mouth being formed bya recess provided in the. bottom and end ofn the discharge. section.

3. acrusherasin claim V2j, andb'reaker projecf..

tions in the hopper-'and in thev discharge` secl'liOIl. Y

4. A ,crusher as in claim4 2, in which the hopper bottom is, providedVthroughoutr its length with a plurality ofsmall discharge openings.

5. A Crusher as in claim fl, in which said screw comprises a shaft, andtwo screw r-ibbons of differentV diameters on said' shaft.

6. A Crusher as in claim 5, in which both screw ribbons extend the wholelength of the shaft.

'7; In combination, a material-receiving hopper having side walls and abottom wall, a combina- ,V ticnieed and crushing screw rotatably mountedin the hopper adjacent the bottom means adjacent one end of therhopperto permit egress of coarse crushed material, additional means in thebottom or the hopper to permit theY passage of relatively fine crushedmaterial, and conveyor means below the hopper movable in the directionfrom said additional means to said adjacent Wenns- 8 Thev combination ofclaim '7, in which the adjacent means includes a discharge sectionprovided with discharge openings and with a discharge mouth ahead-ofsaid openings, said mouth opening in the aforesaid direction.

9. The combination of claim 8, in which said additional means consistsof a plurality of holes materially smaller than said openings and saidmouth.

1Q. Ehe combination of claim 7, in which said additional means consistsof a plurality of holes materially smaller than said openings and saidmouth..-

11. In a Crusher, a hopper having sloping walls and a curved bottomwall, at least two of the sloping walls being opposedand being formed bysubstantially unbrohen planes which are tangent to thehopper bottomwall, a discharge section securedtofthe hopper, a shaft rotatable in thehopperl bottom and in the discharge section, a pair of screw ribbons otmaterially diierent diameters on the shaft extending throughout thelength of the shaft, the convoluticns of the one ribbon lying betweenthe convolutions of the other, a discharge gate on the dischargelsection and having discharge openings therein, and an auxiliarydischarge mouth ahead of said gate.

12. In a Crusher, a hopper having sloping walls and a curved bottomwall, at least two of the sloping wallsLbeing/opposed and being formedby substantially unbrokenplanesfwhich are tangent to the hopper bottomwall, a disclfiargei section 5 secured to the hopper, a shaft rotatablein the hopper bottom and in the discharge section, a pair 0f screwribbons of materially diierent diameters on the shaft, a discharge gateon the discharge section and having discharge openings therein, and anauxiliary discharge mouth ahead of said gate.

HUBERT L. SMITH. ARNOLD A. GUSTAFSON.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 6Name Date Warford June 10, 1924 Bernert June 24, 1924 Currier Oct. 4,1932 Hanna June 5, 1934 Kohout Oct. 31, 1939 Massano May 4, 1943

